The grass is greener
by funkydancer
Summary: On a particularly stormy night, Beast Boy spots a person drowning outside in the bay.
1. Chapter 1: Thanksgiving dinner's storm

**First Episode**

The storm raging outside threw more rain down onto Jump city. Waves outside in the bay mounted up to twenty feet high, frothing as the wind urged them to crash in huge frothy explosions. Inside the teen titans tower all remained normal. Raven was reading, Cyborg and Robin were playing video games, Beast Boy was watching intensely, waiting for his turn to play the winner, and Starfire was cooking… dinner?

"Friends, I have finished preparing our meal!" Starfire exclaimed. A delicious aroma floated from out of the kitchen. Robin and Cyborg started to drool and even Raven stood up and made her way to the table. Set out on the table was a large roast chicken, complete with mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, pumpkin pie, and a plate of tofu. Everyone hurriedly sat down and started wolfing the food with great pleasure.

"Happy celebrating of the pilgrim's meal!" Starfire said. She was pleased with herself. Robin looked up, confused.

"I think you mean 'Thanksgiving' and that's not until November." He said, before wolfing food again.

"But," Cyborg added hastily, noticing Starfire's crestfallen face. "This meal is great! It's perfect for rainy weather."

Starfire smiled thankfully for the compliment, and then noticed Beast Boy was staring at his plate, looking emotionless.

"Beast Boy, what's wrong? You've eaten hardily anything; did I wrongly prepare your extra dish of tofu?"

Beast Boy looked up at Starfire. "No, no, the tofu's fine. I'm just... not hungry." he said. The others paused in their eating. Beast Boy would have normally stuffed his face too, so this was strange.

"Is there anything bothering you?" Starfire asked.

"No, I've just got a weird vibe." Beast Boy said. "Maybe you can save some tofu for me." He stood up and walked out of the room. The Titans looked at each other.

"Well, that was odd." Raven said. "Someone ought to see what's up with him."

"And we will," said Cyborg. "But after dinner." And once again, the titans wolfed down their 'thanksgiving' dinner.

* * *

Beast Boy stood staring out the window upstairs in his room, not really looking at the storm or anything in particular. He didn't know why, but all day he'd just felt… strange. It almost felt like he was waiting for something.

Downstairs, Beast Boy could hear his friends enjoying themselves and stuffing their faces. He smiled slightly, knowing that he still had his friends. To Beast Boy, having friends as loyal as the Titans meant the world.

* * *

Sometime later, Beast Boy was sitting on the couch in the living room, flipping channels, when the lightening started to flash. He turned up the volume on the TV and paid no attention until a thunderous BOOM shook the tower. In an instant Beast Boy morphed into a mouse in fright. Starfire was just eating her last bite of dinner and yelped, looking shaken, and exclaimed. "Is this normal for an earth storm to do?"

Cyborg took the dishes to the sink and washed them while Starfire dried. Raven was trying to read again, but apparently the irregular booming made it harder for her to concentrate. Beast Boy turned the TV off, and stood a few feet away from the living room window, watching the rain and waves outside.

"Hey." Robin said, appearing next to Beast Boy.

"Hey." Beast Boy said back. "Nasty weather, huh? I'm glad no villains are bugging us today."

"Yeah." Both gazed out at the churning water momentarily.

"So," Robin asked. "Is something bothering you? You've been acting funny."

Beast Boy shrugged. "I don't know. I think this storm is putting me on edge, that's all. It's the animal instincts getting the better of me, right?" Beast Boy asked.

Robin stared at him. "Are you sure?"

"I'm fine." Beast Boy insisted. Robin stared at him for a moment more, and then nodded. Just then a huge bolt of lightning flashed, and suddenly Beast Boy ran towards the window. In that flash, he'd seen something. He pressed his face against the glass. Another bolt of lightening illuminated the choppy water for a moment and he saw it again: a tiny figure out in the distance.

"Robin, there's someone out there!" Beast Boy exclaimed. Robin stared out the window too.

"I don't see anything." Robin frowned.

The waves were illuminated again by lightening. This time they both saw someone far out in the water struggling frantically in the pummeling waves. Robin's eyes opened wide. Robin called the others and told them of what they'd seen.

"Come on Cyborg, Beast Boy, we've got to get to the T car. Girls, get the medical room ready." Robin said. The guys sprinted to the T car, Cyborg and Robin up in the front seat, and soon had it flying just above the water.

The rain was coming in sheets. The waves were crashing all around, and it was hard to see that anyone could be surviving out there. Robin and Beast Boy occasionally caught a glimpse of a human figure struggling out in the waves. The wind howled against the T car and Cyborg yelled "I've got the engine floored, but the winds too strong, we can't go any farther!" Robin surveyed the ocean and caught a glimpse of a torso before a wave blocked his view.

"Beast Boy-" Robin started.

"No problem Robin, I'm on it!" Beast Boy said.

Beast Boy opened the door and jumped quickly into the air, morphing into a pterodactyl. He quickly realized just how powerful this wind was. Almost too powerful, Beast Boy thought. Just then Beast Boy spotted the figure. He nose-dived into the water nearby the person and morphed into a large sea turtle. The wind was howling all around and lightening flashed every moment, it seemed. Beast Boy had lost sight of the figure. He morphed into a duck and briefly glided a few feet above the surface of the ocean before another wave could crash. Then he caught full sight of the person he was rescuing.

The person was a girl, probably about eight years old, Beast Boy guessed. One look at her face and Beast Boy could tell she'd been out in the water for a long time. As a new wave prepared to crash over the both of them, the girl stopped fighting the powerful pull of the current. Her eyes slid shut, and she slipped underneath the wave.

Beast Boy morphed into a dolphin and nose-dived into the water. He fought his way through the current and bubbles as the wave crashed moments after Beast Boy and the girl had gone under. He swam as fast as he could down to the girl. She was sinking down rapidly, like a rock. Her hair curled around her deathly pale face as another lightening bolt lit up the water for a small second. She twitched a fraction, her lungs finally visibly breathing in salty water. Beast Boy caught up to her and quickly morphed into his own body, grabbing hold of the girl by the arm before she could sink any further. He swam up as fast as he could, and broke the surface a minute after he'd gone under. Beast Boy held the girls head above the water and fought against five or six more waves before reaching the T car.

Robin leaned out the side of the backseat and pulled the girl and Beast Boy inside. Robin closed the door hurriedly, and Cyborg was able to turn the car around, heading for the tower. Robin straightened the girl in the backseat. Both Beast Boy and Robin were kneeling next to her, a bit awkwardly because of lack of space.

"Is she breathing?" Beast Boy asked.

"No." Robin said gravely. Then he started pumping on her chest, counting up from one-one thousand and so on. Beast Boy watched; dread filling his heart when the girl's face remained motionless. Without knowing it, Beast Boy reached out for the girl's hand...

Beast Boy's eyelids drooped. Suddenly, without warning, Beast Boy felt so tired, he didn't think he had the energy to blink his eyes. He slumped onto the floor and his hand slid away from the girl's. Then, miraculously, the girl gasped and started to cough. Robin sighed in relief, and smiled at Beast Boy. Beast Boy however, was fast asleep. Robin looked back down at the girl and saw, to his amazement, that she was… well, growing! The girl's arms and legs grew longer and her facial features grew more defined and aged. Then, it stopped. The girl now resembled the age of a teenager. She exhaled and went still.

They'd reached the tower. Cyborg drove the car into the garage and parked. Robin picked the girl up and got her out of the backseat, and Cyborg scooped up Beast Boy. They all raced up to the elevator and into the medical room, where Starfire and Raven were waiting. They laid the girl down on a hospital bed and hooked her up to a few monitors, making sure she was okay. The scans said she was, the only thing was her stress levels in her muscles were abnormally high. The Titans stood around the girl's bed and watched her sleep.

"What do you think this girl was doing outside in this weather?" Starfire wondered.

"She's not an ordinary civilian." Robin said. "When Beast Boy pulled her out of the water she couldn't have been older than eight or nine."

"Well, she isn't nine anymore." Raven said.

"Maybe the girl was 'knocked unconscious'?" Starfire thought.

"Speaking of unconscious," Cyborg added. He held Beast Boy by a leg and hollered. "Yo! BB!" In answer, Beast Boy morphed into a dog and started to snore. Cyborg dropped him ungracefully on the bed next to the girl and muttered. "I know he's doing this on purpose."

"Has the girl has done something to Beast Boy?" Starfire asked Robin.

"Not sure." Robin thought. "When she wakes up we'll talk to her."

"What of Beast Boy?" asked Starfire.

"I ain't pickin' him up again." Cyborg said, folding his arms.

"Leave Beast Boy for now." said Robin, closing the matter. "He'll come to us when he wakes up."

The Titans looked at the girl for a moment longer. She looked calm, so calm it was as if her life had never been in danger. Beast Boy was on his back as a dog, looking dead were it not for his chest moving up and down and an occasional leg twitching.

"If the girl's all right, I'm going to read my book." said Raven, turning and drifting out of the room.

"I should make some adjustments to the T car. If my baby can't handle strong winds…" That was all that was heard as Cyborg stepped into the elevator as the doors closed and dropped down to the bottom floor.

"I will go sing Silkie a lullaby." Starfire said. "Unless, if I can be of some further assistance with the girl?"

Robin shook his head. "No. The girl's vital signs say she's fine. She should be awake in a few hours."

Starfire gave Robin a warm smile before also taking her leave. Robin watched the girl on for a few more minutes, observing the monitors, the girl, and Beast Boy. The steady rising and falling of both Beast Boy and the girl's chests reassured Robin, and he too took leave of the medical room. In a few hours, he supposed, he could get some answers. And on that note Beast Boy and the girl slept quietly.


	2. Chapter 2: No memory

**Author's note: **Okay, so it's been a year and I'm sure the first reviewers have totally forgotten about this story, but I'm planning on updating more often from now on, and I'd just like to say, thanks everybody, for your kind reviews! This chapter's ubber long, to compensate, though it's mostly introductions. Anyway... on with the year-overdue second chapter!

_Oww._

That was the first thought that formed inside the recently drowned girl's mind. She felt worn down. It was strange, she thought, of how sleepy she felt. That nothingness, that dreamless sleep, could have lasted for years for all she knew. With a new wave of uncomfortable aching, the girl tried to take her mind back to where she was safe, back into nothing.

Something wouldn't let her. What was it? The prickling pain seemed to be vibrating every inch of her. The girl unwillingly cracked her eyes open, taking in her surroundings. It felt like she was laying on some sort of… the word mattress came to mind. A large rectangular window was on her left, and for the first time she picked up on the sounds of hammering rain and the darkness of night. The girl sat up urgently. A need to be more alert was growing. It was panic, she thought, as she suddenly identified the emotion. The rain, and the ocean that the window overlooked, it was terrifying her. What was going on?

"Hey." A voice said.

The girl's eyes darted away from the window and whirled around the dim room for the voice. From the other side of the room a figure wearing a costume that reminded the girl of a stoplight stepped towards the mattress. He let out a soft smile and held up his hands.

"It's okay. I won't hurt you. You're safe here."

The girl noticed her heavy breathing and realized how panicked she must look. She studied the boy in the costume. He wore a mask covering his eyes, which gave him a kind of intimidating look, but his mannerism made him seem… trusting, the girl supposed. The girl opened her mouth but found at first attempt no words came out, and she choked on a gulp of water that had been partially sitting in her windpipe. She coughed, and tried again, this time successfully making words.

"Where am I?" She asked, her voice cracking slightly.

"You're in the infirmary of Titans Tower."

The girl stared blankly at the boy. _Infirmary… like a hospital. But Titan's tower?_

"I guess you've never heard of us." The boy said. The girl shook her head.

"My name's Robin." The boy said, holding out his hand for the girl to shake. The girl met the gesture and lightly held Robin's hand in handshake, noticing how smooth and gentle Robin's green gloves felt. Robin looked at the girl, waiting for her to speak up. The girl stared right back at Robin, and she let go of his hand timidly.

"So, what's your name?" Robin asked.

The girl looked down at the sheets and back at Robin.

"I don't know." She said slowly. "I… I don't remember. I know it must sound strange, but I… I don't know."

Robin's mask frowned for a moment, before re-straightening to the kind expression again.

"Can I sit down?" he said, gesturing to a spot on foot of the bed. The girl nodded, noticing for the first time that there was a green dog lying over the lower part of her legs, sleeping. His fur was damp, she could feel the moisture stick to the sheets, and as she noticed the dog, memories of the rescue flooded into her memory.

"Do you know why our team found you in the ocean?" Robin asked.

"I remember that!" The girl said. "Not much at first. Panic, falling, bright sunlight, ocean. I kept panicking, because I couldn't see the coastline. Before that… there's nothing."

"You have amnesia." Robin said. "It's okay; you stopped breathing, a bit of memory loss is a common side effect with near drownings. So you don't know who you are. Do you remember anything else?"

"Yes, I have memories after that. I'm making new memories right now." The girl smiled faintly, and Robin too gave a smile. Feeling a bit more relaxed, the girl began to recount her memories.

"I floated, on my back mostly, so I couldn't look down underneath me and think of sharks or other giant sea animals. The sun moved over halfway across the sky, the water was cold, but the sun kept me from shivering for too long. The sun disappeared after a long time, the water was cold again, and the rain and thunder started. The waves came, which I struggled against for ages, it seemed, fruitlessly. I surprised myself by the amount of time I was lasting. There was darkness everywhere, I was so scared, and my strength gradually just left. Then I just froze and sank. I didn't know someone would come save me."

The girl smiled after this last sentence, giving a grateful look to Robin. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Robin said, smiling also, glad to know the girl was all right. "But thank Beast Boy. He was the one who saw you from the Tower; if he hadn't, we couldn't have saved you."

"Where is he?" the girl asked.

"He's the green dog at your feet." Robin said. The girl gave him a funny look.

"A dog saved me? A green dog?"

"Beast Boy's a shapeshifter." Robin said. "He's green in every form he takes, but he's human."

"Cool…" the girl murmured in awe. She patted the sleeping dog/boy shyly, and when the dog did not move, she patted it with more courage.

"He sure likes to sleep." The girl mentioned.

"Yes… about that." Robin said slowly. "Something happened a few hours ago, when we had just rescued you. You'd just been resuscitated, when Beast Boy slumped onto the floor, morphed into a dog, and… well, he's been asleep ever since."

"You think I did something?" the girl asked, reading Robin's expression. He nodded.

"Yes. It would make sense, BB's condition following your sudden recovery."

The girl shook her head. "I couldn't have done it. Unless I hit… Beast Boy on the head, I couldn't have hurt him. I don't have superpowers, like him."

Robin raised his eyebrows. "But it's possible. You said so earlier that you didn't remember anything about yourself."

The girl rubbed her head. "It doesn't make sense. I couldn't have powers… What kind of power is that anyway, making people fall asleep? Oh, I wish I could remember!" The girl groaned in frustration.

"Gifts like superpowers happen to some people. It's not bad if you have one." Robin said reassuringly. The girl realized she was squeezing Beast Boy's fur, and quickly loosened her grip.

"Well… it would be cool, I guess, to have a superpower. Even if it's something silly."

"You were also younger, when we rescued you." Robin added. "We guessed your age to be nine. After you were resuscitated, you started… growing. You stopped in your teens. So I'm positive you must have at least one superpower."

"Wow…" The girl said slowly. "But even so, I don't know how aging myself harmed Beast Boy."

"Neither do I, which is why it's good that you have some memories of today. Do you remember anything else about the falling you described, in the beginning? Falling off a boat, for example, or an airplane?"

"No. No boats or airplanes… I really don't know. I couldn't see anything but ocean, in every direction, and the sky was cloudless at first. So no airplanes." The girl glanced at Beast Boy curiously, and Robin looked at Beast Boy as well, in thought.

"Do you remember Beast Boy at all?" Robin asked suddenly. "He would have been a green dolphin, turtle, or bird of some sort."

"I'm not sure." The girl said. "I…I knew I was going to drown, in the end. I gave up fighting… I knew I was sinking… I inhaled water when I couldn't hold my breath any longer." The girl's damp eyebrows furrowed as she closed her own eyes, trying to recall. "I… remember a lightening flash, but my hair was in my face, whatever was there I couldn't see clearly. Then there was lightness, and a feeling of being compressed into a small hole… and then, the darkness became a deep, pleasant sleep."

Robin's head fell a little in thought.

"Does that help at all?" the girl asked.

"Maybe. Technically, you died, for a second. Beast Boy dropped dead asleep, once you took your first breath."

The girl and Robin sat on the mattress, Robin watching Beast Boy, and the girl with her head in her hand. She racked her brain for memories, any memory at all, but her mind was a draft of blackness. There were only two memories, the one of the ocean, and the one she was making right now. _But I have to help Robin. I must think… oh, why have I hurt my rescuer?_ The girl felt an overwhelming urge to sob, horrified that perhaps, because of her, the boy who'd saved her would sleep forever. Tears welled in her eyes, and as she fought to control herself, she did not feel Robin's nudge at her shoulder.

"Open your eyes." Robin said suddenly, nudging the girl again. She did, and what she saw made her yelp in surprise. Her free hand, sitting on it's side towards Beast Boy, was releasing a faint band of blue into the dog's sleeping fur. In response, Beast boy's fur was glowing faintly green at the spot in which the blue touched, and green lights reached out toward the blue connection, snaking slowly towards the girl's palm.

"What – what is that?"

"Your power." confirmed Robin.

Instead of feeling excited, the girl's eyes grew wide in horror.

"Is this why he can't wake up? Because I'm hurting him? I'm… what am I doing?"

"I don't think you're hurting Beast Boy," Robin said. "Listen. You can hear him snoring. And his chest is rising and falling faster, which means he's breathing more freely. If anything, I'd say whatever you're doing, is reviving him."

"It is?" The girl said, hopefully. She observed the blue band, afraid to disturb it, lest it should break and hurt Beast Boy. Once Robin said it, she felt sure that his words were right. The girl willed the band to send out more blue light for Beast Boy, and to her and Robin's surprise, the blue band swelled two times its width and turn a light, summery blue.

"What are you doing to make that happen?" Robin asked.

"I… I just want him to get better." The girl said, and with even more conviction, moved her second hand slowly to Beast Boy to touch him, urging more light from that hand too. Robin watched inquisitively, but did not interfere. It took furious willpower and concentration, but soon another tiny blue strand forced its way out of the girl's second palm and into Beast Boy's fur. And for the first time, Beast Boy stirred.

"Look!" The girl said, ecstatic. "He'll be okay!"

As soon as the girl said it, her arms suddenly ached with new pain she hadn't noticed before. The bands of blue light were more intense, and Beast Boy was indeed stirring, but the girl's insides were wailing of exhaustion, and pain. The girl shuddered. Robin noticed, and gently slid his hands under the girl's hands, closing them shut. The blue strands were cut off, and disappeared. Beast Boy fell back asleep, but the sleep was not nearly as deep as before, and he looked unmistakably alive. The girl wavered briefly, and Robin held her in place until she could sit up again on her own.

"So…" the girl smiled lightly, "I guess this is the downside to my 'superpower?'"

"I guess so." Robin said. "And now that we know, I'd suggest that you be careful. If giving that blue energy makes you weak, then I can only assume you took Beast Boy's energy to stay alive earlier."

"How do you know its energy?" The girl said, looking at her hands.

"It makes you weak when you gave more of it away. And closing your hands, I felt… a boost, I guess. It made my own hands feel stronger." Robin smiled. "But call it a hunch. I can't be sure until the rest of my teammates assess you."

"The rest? There's more of you?"

"Of course. We are part of the Teen Titans, that is to say, crimfighters. We catch criminals and help police investigate cases they alone cannot solve. Five of us live here, In Titans Tower, including me and Beast Boy."

The girl's eyes widened in curiosity. "Do they have powers too?"

"Well, yeah, I guess."

"May I meet them now?"

"Of course." Robin said. "Are you sure you have enough strength?"

The girl nodded.

"Okay. One last thing. Before we go, you need a name."

The girl slapped her head. "Of course. You can't call me 'girl'. What sounds good?"

I don't know. Something simple, I think, would suit you."

The girl thought for a moment. Robin slipped off the mattress, and held out his hand to assist her. The girl looked over Robin's gloves for a moment, and a word floated into her head.

"How about Fern?" the girl asked.

"Fern?" Robin looked at the girl, searching her face. "It works."

The girl, or from now on as she was called, Fern, grinned from ear to ear and took Robin's hand. Robin led Fern to the elevator and ascended to the ops center, where the other Titans were waiting.


	3. Chapter 3: Introductions

**Authors Note: **I want to shoot my introductions. They're way too long, it feels like I'm getting nowhere with this story. (slaps self) Well don't worry, I promise things will start moving a little more in the next chapter. To EternalLoss, thanks for the alert! I'm only a month overdue this time, I'm getting slightly better at this updating buisiness :)

The Titans were waiting patiently in the ops room. Robin had given them the call that the girl had been waking, a lot earlier than expected. Robin had been gone for a while, and Cyborg, unable to stand looking at a blank TV screen, booted up the gamestation and challenged Starfire to a racing game. Starfire was losing, partly due to the fact she'd begun to chew at the game controller. Cyborg felt a tiny pang that Beast Boy was not there, because Cyborg could gloat about winning then. Starfire never seemed to get that losing wasn't a good thing. Cyborg sighed. Meanwhile, Raven drifted around the room, doing some idle straightening-up.

Finally the Titans heard sounds of the elevator. Robin entered the ops room first, and behind him, almost invisible, was the girl. She was a few inches shorter than anyone in the room, easily. Her blue eyes searched the room, drinking in what to her was a strange scene. Her blonde hair was a mess, her clothes were worn out and hanging limp on her frame, and seemed several sizes too small for her. She wore what was supposed to be a light sleeveless shirt, and long blue shorts. She was barefoot.

Robin made introductions. "Everyone, I'd like you to meet Fern. Fern, these are the Teen Titans."

Fern smiled and waved timidly. "Hello."

Starfire shot off the couch almost immediately and shook Ferns hand. "I am Starfire!" She exclaimed. Fern noticed wide-eyed that Starfire was floating almost a foot off the ground. "I hope you are okay, from your swim in the ocean?" Starfire asked sincerely.

"Nice way to phrase drowning." murmured Raven, moving with black energy the gamestation controllers to the table in front of the giant couch.

"That's Raven." Starfire stated to Fern.

Raven eyed Fern cautiously. "Fern, huh?"

"Mhmm." Fern said quietly. Raven had her hood up, so Fern couldn't see Raven's full face. It was somewhat unnerving, Raven's gaze. Fern turned her attention to the giant… robot/man?

"Cyborg. Pleased to meet you!" he said before Fern could ask. Cyborg stuck out his hand. Fern shook it and was surprised to touch the giant mechanical fists. Though they were metal, Cyborg controlled them as if they were nothing but skin and bone.

"Likewise." Fern said. Cyborg smiled big at her.

"So, little lady, what's your story?"

Fern looked to Robin, who answered for her.

"She has amnesia."

"I remember what happened… some of it." Fern said. "And what's going on right now."

"Really?" Cyborg said. "Sorry to hear that."

"Am-neeza?" asked Starfire. "You are from a distant planet?"

Fern stared.

"Amnesia isn't a planet, Star." said Robin. Starfire looked doubtful. Without warning, Starfire poked Fern in the stomach. Fern jumped. "Ouch!"

"Perhaps… you do not remember your distant home planet?" Starfire questioned, eyes hopeful. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Don't worry about it, Fern." Cyborg said. "Most amnesia is induced when the brain is under severe stress. I'm sure a little down-time will cure you up."

"Think anyone's looking for her?" Raven asked Robin.

"I'm not sure. Cyborg, could you start a search? See if any profiles matching hers come up in police files."

"Smile big!" Cyborg said to Fern, and his cybertronic eye flicked red, making little red squares all over Fern's body. It lasted for about three seconds, and then snapped off.

"Okay, I've got the image. I'll see what comes up." Cyborg walked over to the computers in the ops room and stuck his finger into one of the slots, and Fern could see an image of herself load onto the faraway screen. She looked… worn. A wave of heat rushed to Fern's cheeks, wondering what she must look like to the Titans.

"Robin?" Fern asked.

"Yeah?"

"What's going to happen to me?"

Robin didn't answer straight away. He looked around at each of his teammates first. Raven had a nonchalant look on her face, Cyborg was busy with the computer, and Starfire's eyes lit up.

"Well…" Robin said slowly. "I suppose you'll stay with us tonight. After that, I'm not sure. We have to wait for the police search, see if you have family looking for you, or if your amnesia clears up."

"Okay."

"Until then, is there anything you need?" Robin asked. "Hungry, thirsty?"

"I could use a shower." Fern said, blushing. Robin seemed unperturbed.

"Of course. Starfire will show you the bathroom."

Starfire grinned and hugged Fern happily. "I will show you the operations of the bathrooms, earth-friend!" Starfire grabbed Fern's arm violently and tugged her in a blur of speed towards the bathrooms. Raven puffed a strand of loose hair out of her face as the air resettled in the ops center.

"Think Fern's telling the truth about the amnesia?" Raven asked Robin.

"Did you sense something?"

Raven didn't answer. Instead she asked "Does she know about her powers?"

"No. We'll run an analysis on her tomorrow, supposing no reports come up by then."

"Be careful what you say to her." Raven said quietly.

"We'll keep an eye on her." Cyborg muttered. Robin and Raven turned to him. Cyborg was no longer looking through the blur of police files, but at the security cameras inside titan's tower.

"What are you doing?" Robin asked.

"Keeping an eye on Fern." Cyborg grinned and burst out into laughter. "Starfire's got Fern in her room, wearing ski pants and a duck hat!"

Robin let a smile drift over his face. Raven mentally cast black energy over the computer outlet. The computer screen went blank.

"Hey!" Cyborg said, recoiling from the suddenness of the dark screen.

"Boys." Raven muttered, sweeping herself up in her cape. "There'd better not be any cameras in my room."

"Of course not!"

"And the bathroom?"

"Titans honor." Cyborg swore. Raven's eye twitched, and she walked out.

Robin and Cyborg looked at each other, and burst out into unrestrained laughter.

* * *

"So you produce energy, yes?" Starfire said. "Most amazing."

Fern was finishing dressing herself. She'd convinced Starfire to put the duck hat away, but the flower wallpaper shirt and ski pants were apparently keepers.

"Robin said I made myself older, back when they rescued me. I don't remember it."

"Perhaps because you were unconscious."

"I guess. So, what do you do?"

"I create starbolts." Starfire demonstrated by holding a ball of green in her palm. "And fly, of course."

"I noticed." Fern said, smiling. Ever since Fern got out of the shower, Starfire had been floating easily two feet off the ground. They walked back towards the ops center.

"Are there more of you? Titans, I mean." Fern asked.

"Of course. We could not all live in the Jump city. Would you would wish to meet them?"

"Sure."

"I will speak to Robin."

Starfire and Fern had reached the ops room. Cyborg and Robin stifled laughter at Fern's new attire, and Raven was working at the computer, faces flitting by on the screen so quickly they seemed to be a big blur.

Raven clicked out of the police files. The screen went blue, then to a slideshow featuring Cyborg standing in front of a tower of waffles. "No missing reports for Fern's profile in the states."

The thunder and lightening had stopped outside. Now it was raining steadily. The waves had lessened. Fern stared into space before asking "So what does that mean?"

"Maybe a report hasn't been filed yet." Robin suggested.

"It's only been a day or two, at best," Cyborg said reassuringly. "Missing person reports sometimes aren't filed until up to a week of absence."

Fern nodded, showing she understood. The room was silent.

Raven broke the silence. "I'm going to bed."

"Does she not like me?" Fern asked, once Raven had left the room.

"Raven has only just met you." Starfire filled in. "As we all. Do not judge her actions as the way she feels."

Fern nodded again. Once again, she had no words. Silence filled the room. Robin broke the quiet this time.

"For your safety, Fern, I think its best you stay the night in the hospital wing. That way if there's anything wrong with your bodily health, we'll be able to solve the problem quickly."

Fern nodded. "Okay. That's fine. Thank you, I appreciate your hospitality."

"Our pleasure!" Cyborg grinned. Something in his eyes told Fern he hadn't quite got over her strange outfit, because the corners of his mouth kept twitching. Cyborg took Fern back to the hospital wing. He opened the door and saw Beast Boy was still sprawled out as a dog on the bed, drooling.

"Gross…" groaned Cyborg. "Beast Boy! Where's your dignity?"

Fern laughed. Cyborg took the pillow off the bed, dropped it on the floor, then unceremoniously dropped Beast Boy onto the pillow. Beast Boy cracked an eye open, but then rolled over and went back to sleep. Cyborg laughed.

"Don't worry about the green mutt; chances are he'll wake up and leave in a few minutes after a fall like that." Cyborg said. "There's some spare pillows and sheets under the mattress." Cyborg pulled out a flat looking pillow and a few sheets and organized them on the bed.

"Thanks." Fern climbed into the bed and curled up. Cyborg walked to the door and paused.

"Do you like meat?"

"Huh? Oh. Sure, I guess."

"Waffles? Pancakes?"

"I don't see why not."

"Good! I'm cooking breakfast tomorrow. Beast Boy hates meat." Cyborg grinned evilly. "I'll be sure to creep him out extra for your viewing pleasure."

"Ok." Fern yawned. "Night Cyborg."

Cyborg flipped the lights off and closed the door. Fern laid there for a few seconds, listening to Cyborg walk away, and then slid out of bed. She took the remaining spare sheets and made a small bed on the floor. Then, picking up Beast Boy's body gently, she transferred him and the pillow into the bed/nest on the floor. Fern sat next to Beast Boy for a while, on the floor, enjoying the sound of consistent breathing. It was hard to believe that the dog breathing could be a human. It was hard to believe any of this, actually. But here she was.

"Thank you." She whispered silently to the sleeping creature. Her eyes had become adjusted to the dark, and Beast Boy looked comfortable enough in the sheets. Fern was satisfied. She crawled up into her own bed, exhausted, ignoring the slight bite of the cold room, and fell fast asleep.


End file.
